Taking Steps to Avoid Elevators
by Zeprithy
Summary: A trip out to the shopping centre results in Kano and Kido getting trapped in an elevator together. [KanoKido]


It was _hot. _The scorching summer heat spilt in from every window and crevice, laying heavily on Kano and making his skin uncomfortably damp. He let out a sigh as he attempted to cool himself with the makeshift paper fan he had made, but for all it did he might as well have folded the paper into an ice cream and attempted to eat it instead.

Deciding he had had enough of sitting around in the dismal heat, Kano eventually stood up and stretched, arching his back and extending his arms with a sigh. "Hey, Kido," he said. The green-haired girl frowned at him from her seat on the couch opposite, eyebrows raised in questioning. "You said you needed to buy a new shower head attachment, right?"

"Yeah," she admitted. "Mine broke the other day. What about it?"

"I was going to say we should go get it now. I'm going to end up melting away to nothing if I stay in here much longer, and that would be a pretty disappointing way to die, don't you think?"

The twitch in Kido's face at the mention of his death made something in Kano's chest flutter. For a moment, he thought for certain she was going to refuse, or to tell him he needed to deal with it, or maybe just say not to talk about death so casually. But then, so low he almost missed it, she said, "Fine. Let me go get changed."

Kano blinked at her, surprised by how easily she had agreed to coming, then quickly regained his composure and shot her a grin. She rolled her eyes and left to get dressed.

When they eventually got to leaving the base, Kano was already beginning to regret it. If it was hot inside, outside was scorching. The ground didn't exactly sizzle, but that was only because that implied there was some form of liquid around; rather, it _baked_.

When Kano brought up the idea of buying some ice cream or slushies with their money instead of a shower head, Kido had just glared at him from under her hood and refused pointblank._Rude. _

Of course, he had just laughed and said that it seemed to be Kido who needed the refreshment more than him. Kano may have partly admitted defeat to the summer in taking off his hoodie, but it was easy enough to create an image of neat composure with his eye ability. To everyone else, he must have looked blissfully cool in the heat, without even the sheen of sweat that seemed to be adorning every other person's forehead. However, Kido didn't have that luxury, and had not yet even given into the heat by taking off her hoodie. Kano would have applauded her strong will if he didn't think she'd just punch him for it.

Soon enough, the two of them arrived at the department store, their movements dragging more and more with every step. As they walked through the automatic doors, a cool burst of air came rushing from above, so beautifully _cold _that Kano had to resist the urge to moan in pleasure. But soon enough Kido was already walking on ahead, so Kano had to leave the spot under the air conditioner to chase after her.

"Ah, Kido, can't we just stay in the cold for a bit longer?" he asked once he had caught up to her, purposefully extending his puffs of exhaustion in a bid for guilt. Unsurprisingly, it didn't work.

"You knew I just needed to get the shower head. You didn't have to come."

"I couldn't just leave Kido going out on her own- that would be irresponsible of me!"

She scoffed. "I can go out to the department store on my own; I'm not a little kid."

Before Kano could respond to her, he realised they had walked to the elevator doors already. He pressed the button at the side of the doors, taking an absurd pleasure in seeing the button light up neon green, then turned back to Kido and began to argue his point again. "I'm merely saying that it would be very rude! Besides, like I said, it's much more pleasant out here with you than it is boiling to death back at base." Realising what he had said a little too late, he quickly added, "You know, at least when everyone else is being so boring."

She just snorted. "Right."

The elevator doors slid open with a _ding_. "Ground floor," announced the speaker, the voice tinted with an electronic ringing that reminded Kano of that girl on Shintaro's phone. "Perfumery, kitchenware, stationary and leather goods. Going up."

Once they were inside, it soon became clear the elevator didn't have the same blissful air conditioning that the entrance had. That uncomfortable sweat began to creep its way across Kano's neck again. "What department would you find a shower head in?" he asked, finger tracing along the buttons' panel.

"Home, I guess?" Kido frowned. "Actually, maybe with kitchenware... We should go and-"

But by the time she had started to speak again, Kano had already pressed on the ninth floor button. The doors clanged shut. "Whoops," Kano said with about as much expression as a brick wall. "Oh well."

Kano twitched. "Don't just say 'oh well'!"

"Well I can't do anything about it now, can I?" He gave an exaggerated sigh as the elevator started to ascend. "We'll just check up on the ninth floor first, and then if it's not up there we can go down and check on the ground floor. It'll be easy-peasy, trust me!"

"You ca-"

There was a resounding _clang _from somewhere above them and the elevator came to a juddering stop, the lights flickering feebly. For a few moments, the floor seemed to sway beneath them, and Kano became startlingly aware of how there was nothing but a few bits of rope and wire keeping the elevator from smashing into the ground. He swallowed.

Beside him, Kido seemed to be doing her best imitation of a statue. Her face was even and still, but it had gone a chalky white colour, and her hands were clenched into fists around the bar attached to the elevator's wall. _Being the brave leader, as always, _Kano mused.

Carefully hiding the truthful cracking in his voice, Kano said, "Ah, looks like the elevator stopped!" brightly. Kido didn't show any sign of having heard him. "I guess we should press the emergency button, shouldn't we?"

Without waiting for a response he knew he wouldn't get, he stepped forward and examined the button menu again. At the top, there were two bright red buttons: 'STOP' and 'Alarm'. Kano hummed and pressed down on the alarm one once, then twice, then several times to the rhythm of that song he had heard Shintaro humming to himself earlier. Kido muttered something behind him that sounded peculiarly similar to 'shut up'. He gave the button one last, extended press for good measure before backing off.

"There we go. That should get their attention, right? Should there be some speaker or something?" Kano glanced back at Kido, tilting his head. She was looking worse now, her composure cracking. "Kido? Do you want to sit down?"

She nodded shakily, sliding down the wall until she hit the floor. Curling up into a ball, legs pulled up to her chest, Kido looked scarily... vulnerable. _Almost like when we were kids,_ Kano realised. When he was young, there were dozens of times Kano had noticed the quiet girl had been missing for a while and go on a hunt for her, only to find Kido sitting in the corner of some cupboard or the garden, crying into her arms.

"Hey... it's alright, you know," Kano said, slipping into the spot next to Kido on the floor. "This is a really popular place to shop, so I'm sure they'll realise the elevator's broken soon." Silence. "Wanna talk to get your mind off of things?"

"No." Kano nearly flinched at the coldness in her voice.

He forced himself to give a laugh. _Laugh, smile, joke, _he told himself. _It's the only thing you're good at, after all. _"Hey, Kido, did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off?"

Her eyes peeked through her arms, brows furrowed in confusion. "What?"

"Ah, but don't worry. He's... _all right _now."

There was a second of silence. Then Kido hit him over the head. "Don't make stupid puns like that now, you idiot!"

He just laughed. _Better she's angry at me than frightened. _"I did a theatrical performance about puns the other day, you know. But I guess it was just a play on words."

Kido groaned. "Stop."

Kano opened his mouth to tell another joke, but then the last glimmer in the lightbulbs burnt out, plunging the elevator into darkness and leaving a lingering scent of burning in the air. Kido stiffened next to him.

"Hey, " he said, shuffling closer to her. Her extra body heat wasn't helping with how boiled Kano already felt in the claustrophobic space, but he wasn't going to let that stop him. "What did the grape say when it got stepped on?"

"What?" Her voice wavered even on the single syllable.

"Nothing- but it let out a little whine."

Kido let out a weak giggle. The sound of it made the corners of Kano's mouth curl up some. He thought, somewhat belatedly, that he should hide the smile, but then he remembered that neither of them could see anything in the blackness anyway. Maybe it was better that way.

The sudden rustling of fabric brought Kano out of his reverie. "Kido?"

Even in the darkness, the blush on Kido's face was practically palpable. "I-I'm just taking off my hoodie," she muttered. "It's too hot."

Kano raised his eyebrows, then, after realising she couldn't see his expression, said, "Oh, too hot? My, my, leader, I didn't know you had a fetish for puns."

As it turned out, simultaneously trying to punch Kano and pull of a hoodie didn't work out well for Kido, who just managed to fall onto the same boy she was trying to punch and get her hoodie stuck over her head in the process. Kano snickered. "Shut up," she hissed, squirming away from him blindly. "I- You know I didn't mean it like that. It's the middle of summer! "

"Whatever lets you sleep at night," Kano sang, knowing to duck when the predicted fist came swinging his way in the dark.

Kido mumbled a few angry curses, but soon enough she managed to escape from the confines of her hoodie and gave up on hitting Kano. The elevator fell into silence again, save the muffled murmuring of the shopping crowds above and below. That, and the faint sound of music coming from Kido's headphones.

Had that alarm button even done anything? Was it meant to make a noise or something? Kano wondered if he should have brushed up on his emergency elevator protocol before leaving. He knew what to do if there was an earthquake, sure- but getting stuck in an overheated elevator for an indefinite amount of time was one of those subjects Kano had never really thought he would need to consider. How presumptuous.

"Do you have your phone with you?" Kido asked after a while. "I only have my iPod with me. I left my phone back at the base."

In answer, he slipped the phone out of his pocket and brushed his thumb against the screen, making the screen light up so brightly the sun might as well have been in his palm. Shielding his eyes from the glare, he tossed it to Kido, who somehow managed to catch it after fumbling for it. The light of the phone was harsh and artificial, not at all flattering Kido's pale skin or red eyes.

"You don't have any credit," she muttered as she tapped at the phone, scowling at it. Sighing, she handed it back to Kano. "So we can't phone anyone, then. Got any ideas?"

"I could tell some more puns, if you'd like."

"How would that help our situation?"

"How would it _hurt_ our situation, though?" When Kido didn't reply, he assumed that to mean she was relenting. "What does a clock do when it's hungry?" _He _was hungry right now. Thirsty too, now that Kano thought about it. It didn't help that he was probably losing half his bodyweight in sweat right now.

"Eat a sandwich?" Kido offered halfheartedly.

"Nope," Kano replied. A grin spread across his face. "It goes back for seconds. Why did the baker stop making doughnuts?"

"Why?"

"He got tired of the hole thing. Did you hear about the new brand of broom coming out?"

"No."

"It's really _sweeping_ the nation."

"Where do you even learn all of these?" Kido asked, snorting a little despite herself.

"I don't learn them!" said Kano, voice raised with mock outrage. "They come to me naturally, as the brilliant comedian that I am. You know, my mind is just so brilliant that can I create them on the spot to entertain you, dear Leader." He chuckled at the familiar sound of Kido clicking her tongue beside him.

"You don't need to entertain me." The words were spoken quietly, almost a whisper. Kano felt his chuckle die away in his throat, the light atmosphere he had so desperately fabricated evaporating in the wake of Kido's words. "You always do that. You keep on trying to act like you're unfazed by everything and joke about it all. I know you're lying, Kano."

The words felt as heavy as syrup, trickling down his throat and choking him as he tried to reply. "Ah, I know that," he said eventually, his porcelain smile still holding.

"I hate it."

The silence between them throbbed. "Sorry."

They sat in that silence for what felt like hours, the time dragging and crawling its way along leisurely. At some point, Kido must have taken off another layer, because he heard the familiar folding of fabric and faint outline of her moving in the dark. At another point, Kido had stood up and gone to bang on the doors and shout, but nothing and no one replied.

Kano asked if he could share her earphones, but Kido refused. It was unsurprising, really, considering that he had never seen her share them, but some part of him had thought being stuck in an elevator might make their leader a little bit more accommodating.

The heat started to make Kano drowsy, weighing down on his eyelids and wrapping around him like a blanket. _A little sleep won't hurt, right? _Kido would wake him up if anything happened, surely. With that thought in mind, he yawned and leant against the wall, curling up with his arm under his head.

He had just closed his eyes when the elevator lurched downwards.

While Kano's stomach flipped backwards, Kido gave a short, high scream and clung to the elevator bar. The entire world felt like it was pulled out from underneath them, leaving them suspended in a sort of terrifying weightlessness that made Kano's legs buckle from underneath him.

The elevator plunged down mercilessly, paying no mind to their terror. _Would anyone be sad if I died here?_ Kano wondered. He could almost picture the news report:

_Kano Shuuya, 16 years old, was horribly killed in an elevator accident today at the local shopping centre. Officials say there was a fault in the circuiting, leading to the elevator breaking and falling while the boy was inside. Next up, it's Yamamoto with the weather. _

_Ah, don't let Kido die, though, _he thought to didn't know who he was talking to at this point, but he hoped whoever heard him listened. _I won't miss myself when I die, but I'll miss Kido. Don't let her die here. _There was a screeching sound like metal scratching against metal from outside. _Please._

The elevator grinded to a staggering halt. Above them, the lightbulb started to stammer with a yellow glow, then eventually beamed dusty rays around the enclosed space. Kano only realised his fingers were digging into the threadbare carpet when his hand started to cramp up. He chuckled, hoping it didn't sound as weak as he felt, and glanced over to Kido.

In the gloomy light they had now been gracefully given, Kano could see she had taken off two layers now, leaving her in only a black vest top and her jeans. But her hair covered most of it, sprawling across her back in tendrils of green and hanging down enough to obscure her face from Kano almost completely. She was in that same, curled up position she had been in earlier, but now she was shaking. Her breath came out in shaky, faltering puffs.

"Kido? Look, it stopped moving and the lights came back on. I think they're fixing it now." When the girl didn't respond, Kano cautioned a frown and shuffled over to in front to her. Still no reaction. "Leader?"

Now that he was opposite her, Kano could see her face. She was staring at the floor in delayed shock, her pupils tiny pinpricks in a sea of red. Even when Kano waved a hand in front of her, Kido stayed as still as a china doll, face pale white to match.

"Hey, Kido..." He frowned, shaking her shoulder to try to snap her out of whatever shock she was in. Nothing. "C'mon, it's okay. The light's back on and everything! See?"

When she didn't respond, Kano's sucked his lips together into one thin line and swallowed down a sigh. He had only ever seen Kido like this once before, and it hadn't been an incident he wished to repeat again. _What to do... _

He knew it was a stupid idea as soon as he thought of it, but traitorous body leant forward anyway. It would almost certainly shock Kido out of her shock, for sure, but who knew what would come after. Still, he leant forward slowly, until his nose was barely an inch from Kido's and he could trace the constellations of half-formed tears on her eyelashes. And then- slowly, slowly, slowly, now- he pressed his lips to her own.

She tasted like salt.

Her reaction was instantaneous, as crackling as lightning in a summer storm. She started, jumping at the contact and nearly knocking herself out on the bar as she tried to stand up. Kano pushed himself back from her, putting up his normal mask of a lazy grin to hide his flushed cheeks and shaking hands.

"W-What the _hell_ were you-" Before all the words could come from Kido's outraged mouth, she was cut off by the elevator as it slowly began to ascend again. The lights completely stopped flickering, too, staying that constant pale yellow colour that flooded their enclosed space greedily.

"Ah, you looked pretty out of it, so I was just making another joke to cheer you up." _Smile. _Kano's lips stretched across his face, curled upwards at the ends. "Not one of my finer jokes, I admit. I think it might be better to stick with puns, perhaps? Oh, oh, I've got a good one."

"Kano-"

"No, no, listen! It's even relevant, so that makes it even better. I've always found that some of the best jokes are the ones that relate to current events, don't you think?" Kido's mouth opened and closed as she searched for an opening in Kano's monologue, but he didn't let her have one. His words rushed out, messy and slippery and thick on his tongue, engulfing him whole. "I normally take steps to avoid elevators. Get it? Because it's like _taking steps, _as in-"

"Shut up!"

"-walking up the stairs instead, but it's also referring to taking steps as in taking precautions." He forced a laugh. "Ah, maybe we should have listened to the pun before we go in here, huh?"

Before Kido got the chance to reply, Kano heard the elevator doors behind him open. He turned around to see the gleaming white floor and wall of the shopping mall reflected back into the comparative darkness of the elevator, and he had to stop himself from flinching at the light. A crowd of people were gathered in front of the doors, a mixture of shoppers, mechanics and one single middle-aged man in a suit who appeared to be some sort of boss.

"O-Oh no, I had no idea there were children in the lift," the man stammered, clasping a spotted hand to his mouth in horror. Then he went on his knees, bowing down repeatedly with cries of, "I-I apologise profusely! Please tell me if there is anything I can do to make up for my heinous error!"

Not daring a glance back at Kido, even though he could feel her gaze burning into his back, Kano smiled and pushed himself off of the floor in one fluid movement. "Don't worry about it. Although, now that you mention it," he drawled, "the whole reason we came here was to get a shower head attachment. Oh, and ice cream. We needed that too."

The man blinked a few times, then beamed and said that he would make sure they received the best service possible. He stumbled to his knees, snapping at a few commands at the workers nearby, and gave one last bow before stepping back and letting Kano step out of the lift. The first step onto the solid floor felt like having the first gasp of air after drowning.

When he heard the sound of footsteps behind him as well, Kano knew that Kido had followed him. He didn't look back, afraid his glass mask would shatter if he did. Instead, quietly, he slipped his hoodie back on and muttered, "Maybe next time we should take steps to avoid the elevator, hm?"

Kido didn't reply.


End file.
